Vietnam veteran Colonel Steve Austin experienced a fatale accident after test piloting a new aircraft for NASA. Eventually he was "rebuilt" with bionic limbs in a six million dollar operation by the OSI and became their secret agent.

THE BIONIC MAN has survived the first major arc. Kevin Smith's story was written by Phil Hester and plans are in place to move beyond. Phil Hester will be joined by Aaron Gillespie as the two are co-writing the series and bringing back a certain giant furry character fans from the original TV show will immediately recognize.

We had the opportunity to talk to Gillespie about working with Hester on the series.

Comic Vine: We know where Phil stands on the BIONIC MAN, how do you feel about the TV show?

Aaron Gillespie: Unlike Phil, I wasn't born until after the show went off the air but I grew up knowing a lot about it through pop culture osmosis. My friend had a Six Million Dollar Man board game and I used to listen to a Six Million Dollar Man record that my school had in their library. The show is so engrained into our pop culture history that it's impossible NOT to know about the show. I dare anyone to hear that "nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh" sound effect without instantly knowing where it's from, even if they haven't seen a single episode.

Over the years I've had a lot of fun catching up on reruns. I love it. It's so much fun to watch and it's obvious why it is one of the most beloved TV shows in history.

== TEASER ==

CV: BIGFOOT! I kept asking. How long has he been planned to appear now?

AG: Apparently, you weren't the only one asking. That's one of the great things about Dynamite, they listen to their fans. When Phil first approached me about working on the book with him he said "Our first arc will be Bionic Man versus Bigfoot!" I think issue 6 had just come out at that point, so Bigfoot has been in the plans for at least that long. The funny thing is, during that initial phone conversation, my first question for Phil was going to be "how soon can we put Bigfoot in the book?"

CV: Besides Bigfoot, what else can we look forward to in the next arc?

AG: You might recognize a certain Bionic German Shepard on the cover of issue 13. We last saw Max in issue 4 and he will play a part in this arc. Fans of the show will remember there was more to Bigfoot than meets the eye, and the same goes for our version. Phil and I are working really hard to bring you a story that respects the original Secret of Bigfoot episodes but twists them enough to keep long time fans as well as newcomers guessing. Oh yeah, and punching. You can look forward to lots and lots of punching.

AG: While we haven't really talked about crossovers at this point, we are planning a single issue story that will explain what happened between Steve and Jaime after her accident. I really dig what Paul is doing with Bionic Woman, and would jump at a chance to do a crossover in the future.

CV: If you could get one bionic part, what would you want?

AG: Both my wife and my wallet would love it if I had a bionic implant that allowed me to upload House and Car Repair knowledge directly into my brain.

CV: Will we see Steve wear that famous red track suit more often?

AG: We try to put him in it as much as possible but when you have that cool black and red bodysuit Alex Ross designed it makes for a hard juggling act, fashion wise. So far, we've managed to give both equal air time.

THE BIONIC MAN #12 is on sale in August. Here's an exclusive first look at the interior pages for issue #11.